Once Upon a Door
by Psyche Eros
Summary: Would it hurt to think of his own heart for once? One choice was all it would take. :AU:


The world of Wealth was divided into many kingdoms. There was one particular land that was out of suit with the rest. What made this kingdom unique was its king.

The King was a capricious soul. He was a believer of emotions, things that had no meaning or existence in the other places of his world. This belief drove him to near insanity often, and yet his people were well content with the way he ruled the kingdom. You see, they themselves were frivolous creatures; lovers of music and playthings, idle adventures and romance. They had no problem with their King, for they were exactly like him.

Now the Queen was a different matter. She was from a neighboring kingdom, and this is what made her the way she was. She was the one who was truly responsible for keeping things flowing along smoothly. All day long, she stayed at the King's side, busy with her thoughts and having no time for emotions herself. She was calm as he was skittish, dark as he was light, yet they complimented each other perfectly. The Queen kept her husband in balance, as he did for her.

It is essential that you understand the King and Queen's discrepancy so that you may imagine what the two Princes are like.

They were twins. They had the vanity of their father and the cold candor of their mother. Both tend to act inconsequentially though they have every capability to think things through. So as you can tell, they are a clever mix of their parents.

But they still had qualities to call their own, much as the Princes liked to oversee.

The older one took more after the king, making him a fiery being that had trouble controlling his feelings or figuring them out, for that matter. But his eyes were bright, wide and curious. This Prince took in everything he could, even what lay beyond the castle walls. The younger boy liked to be more reserved and rational than his brother. He kept himself shut in with a barrier, and everyone outside was no one of importance. But he was blinded by his devotion. There was only one person with whom he shared his narrow little world with, and that was his twin.

However, if there was one thing that they truly shared besides their physical form, it was their ability to love someone passionately. When their hearts are on fire, they forget all else and lose their senses.

It so happens that the twins were both under a spell.

The spell was that the two Princes loved each other dearly; they were as one being in everyone else's eyes. That was crystal-clear. Since their birth, there was no one else but the other in their lives. People said this was a curse, but they gave no care about what other people thought, for surely their actions were not at all as scandalous as they appeared. Besides, you can recall that the people of their kingdom are overrun by feelings, so they probably thought of the twins' affection as acts of sincere brotherly love. And of course, that was all they were.

Should this enchantment break, the brothers would no longer be able to love each other as they had before, for they would become two separate people.

But then there came a time when the elder Prince, being inquisitive as he was, decided to find out what it would be like to fall in love with another. He wanted to break the spell that bound him to his brother. He wanted to feel love that was something beyond familial, which was the only kind he ever knew. He wasn't content with just plain love anymore; he wanted _love_. And so he set out to look for it; everyday he roamed about the land.

It could be said with poise that the younger prince was not at all pleased with this sudden development in his older brother's way of thinking. But he was confident that his brother would never find anyone suitable to his taste. After all, he knew the elder well enough to be aware of the latter's pickiness. And he being a giving brother, he would give his twin a 'chance.' So with a smile to himself, the younger Prince let his twin go on his expeditions. And indeed, the older one found nobody, and the younger couldn't help but feel a little pleased that they were still safe within the enchantment.

Still, it seemed that fate was against him.

One day, a poor girl from a far away land of poverty was summoned into the palace at the King's whim. His Highness and Her Majesty took her in as their own daughter, and the girl became a Princess overnight. The kingdom welcomed her, and so did the royal family. As moons passed, princes from all over came to woo her, but the King would have none of it. No one would ever touch his daughter, he proclaimed. And that law was passed.

As they watched the lithe young woman amuse them daily with her antics, it was then that the older Prince felt his heart beat wilder than it ever had before. He was even more mesmerized with her the moment she told him and his twin apart. And he came to a decision; he would marry this commoner girl.

When he confided this to his brother, the younger scoffed. Surely his twin was jesting? Marrying his own sister? But no, said the older. She is not their true sister by blood. It seemed that the elder was dead serious, and nothing stopped him.

The younger Prince could have easily told his parents. But he didn't have to; after a short while, his brother was caught in the middle of a little rendezvous with the peasant, and it looked as if there would be room for the younger Prince to have his brother all to himself again.

Then the heavens had another twist in store for them.

Of course, the King and Queen were devastated when they learned about their older son's crime. They were even more enraged when the Prince was brought before them, still defiant as ever. The King, his mind teeming with anger at his son's betrayal, set a date for his punishment; and it was a most cruel one indeed.

It was fairly simple. There would be an amphitheatre, and on one side would be two closed doors. One would contain the Princess, and one contained a cursed doll. No one, not even the royal family, knew which door had which. Should the Prince find the Princess, the King would marry them then and there, with the whole kingdom to act as witness. But should he find the cursed doll, he would be doomed to spend the rest of his life as it was before he met the girl; when he was still one without desire to love another. Yes, everyone knew the impossibility of the second happening. A person who has opened his heart to love cannot close it again, and that was the point of the punishment. Your fate would be in your own hands, and this was justice in their eyes.

The younger Prince thought about his brother's fate every night. Suddenly, he resolved to find out which door would contain what. After some extent and great effort—which involved most of his gold and precious belongings—the younger Prince found out the secret. He now knew what would lie beyond the doors on the day of his brother's retribution.

But still, a question remained. Which door would he tell his twin to open?

Should he choose the one with the Princess?

He knew her well after a great deal of time spent with her. She was not the fairest maiden in the land, but she had incomparable beauty nevertheless. She was not the richest, but she had a witty mind and a sharp tongue. She was a wonder, and this is why the older Prince loved her so. She was breaking the chains of the spell. The younger prince hissed inwardly. If he chose the girl, he would see his brother wed her before his eyes. The fragile thread that held them together would break. He would see them begin a new and happy life together whilst he grieved for the sad and lonely life he would have to keep on living.

Should he choose the one with the cursed doll?

Would it be so horrible for his twin to resume the life they had before ever meeting the Princess? They had gotten along fine then, he reasoned. Surely it wouldn't be any different if his brother was to leave her and return to his side. He would be back in their land of bliss then; their magic charm would still be intact. Yet as he thought more of it, a picture flashed in the younger's mind of his brother bearing an expression of utmost pain. But at the same time, a flame of selfishness would leap up inside him, licking his insides and driving him to near madness. He knew that he would forever have to endure this pain should he decide to give the older Prince away to the Princess.

--

Finally, the day of the punishment arrived. The people of the kingdom flocked into the amphitheatre to see it—they all loved a good dramatic show. The royal family was perched higher than the rest, of course, where they could see the goings on as clearly as possible.

There were the two doors, as planned. Then the older Prince was escorted to the middle of the showground, and all was hushed.

As expected, he first laid eyes on their parents, and then shot a subtler glance at his twin. This was the younger Prince's moment. Now he would signal the door which his brother would open. Their amber eyes met each other; one pair was hard, cold and resolute, the other was pleading.

In that second, the younger Prince flashed back to those sleepless nights of decision-making. He had woken up in terror with nightmares of his brother's grief-stricken face, lonesome and pining for his lost lover. But the younger Prince had awoken screaming at the more frequent and worse nightmares of his brother being wed to the Princess; their beaming smiles taunting him, the crowds singing happy songs for the couple and his own cry of sorrow remaining unheard…

He didn't want to see either things happen.

Remember that our young Prince is also the kind of person who lets his emotions take over easily, and right now his heart was overflowing with yearning for his brother to be by his side forever.

Would he choose his own happiness over his brother's? Would it hurt to think of his own heart for once?

One choice was all it would take.

Still keeping eyes locked on his elder brother's, he discreetly raised his left hand and watched as his twin turned around and headed for the left door.

The crowd waited with baited breath as he turned the handle.

The younger prince closed his eyes.

_~Fin._

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**A/N: Teeheehee. ;P **

**Yup, that's it. Basically, it's up to you. You decide which door the younger prince chose for his brother. If you wanna follow the manga and say that "Oh, he loves his brother and he'll do anything for him" then go right on ahead. But if you're gonna base it on this story, where the younger prince is a little twisted... Well, it's up to you. xD**

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**I read a story called "The Lady, Or the Tiger?" a few days back, and I got a little... inspired, as you might call it. :P**

**The characters here are pretty easy to figure out. And if you're wondering, no... Honey and Mori didn't actually have a role here. (Gomen, loli-shota fans! don't kill me!) **

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**So... Yeah, that's about it. x)**

**l  
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V**


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